Adolphus von Holst was born in 1846, the son of Gustavus von Holst and Honoria Gooderich of Cheltenham.  As the son of a piano teacher and composer, Adolphus was taught how to play the piano from a young age.  When he was an adult, he began teaching piano to the sons and daughters of the wealthy in Cheltenham, as part of their education.  Adolphus was also an organist and conductor and played at both St. Paul’s and All Saints churches.  From the 1870s, he began teaching the piano at Cheltenham Ladies College, where he fell in love with Clara Cox Lediard, one of his pupils.  They had two children, Gustav and Emil, before Clara died of heart disease.

After Clara’s death, Adolphus moved his family out of 4 Pittville Terrace and brought his sister Nina into his household to look after his children whilst he continued to work as a piano teacher.  A couple of years later, Adolphus remarried and his sister no longer needed to live with him.  Adolphus struggled with a drinking problem for much of his life and died in 1901 at the age of 55 after a drinking session at what is now Montpellier Wine Bar.